Common Name

Blaxell’s Wattle

Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Largely confined to an area between Frank Hann Natl Park (c. 160 km SW of Norseman) N to McDermid Rock (c. 100 km W of Norseman), except for one collection from near Hyden, c. 150 km W and one from near Norseman, c. 90 km due E, W.A.

Description

Spreading ±dense shrub 0.3–1.2 m high. Branchlets tomentulose to densely puberulous (hairs patent to ±appressed). Phyllodes on raised stem-projections, ascending to erect, narrowly oblong to oblong-elliptic, straight, 1–2 (-2.5) cm long, 3–5 mm wide, l:w = (3-) 4–6, obtuse, inconspicuously mucronulate, ±thick and fleshy, glabrous except pulvinus densely puberulous to tomentulose; midrib not prominent; lateral nerves absent or obscure; gland basal, obscure. Inflorescences rudimentary 2-headed racemes with axes < 0.5 mm long; peduncles 7–22 mm long, glabrous; heads globular, 3.5–4.5 mm diam., 17–31-flowered, golden. Flowers 5-merous; sepals free, sometimes absent. Pods variably undulate to circinnate or irregularly sigmoid, to 2 cm long, 3.5–4 mm wide, thinly coriaceous, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal to oblique, broadly elliptic, c. 2 mm long, glossy, black; hilum sublateral; aril linear-clavate, 2/3–3/4 length of seed, white.

Habitat

Grows in red-brown clay in flatland or in loam on low rocky hill-country, in shrub mallee or eucalypt woodland.

Specimens

W.A.: between Bremer Ra. and the Lake King–Kumarl road, B.R.Maslin 5431 (G, MO, PERTH); 25 km ESE of Tadpole Lake, Frank Hann Natl Park, K.Newbey 5537 (AD, NY, PERTH); 4.8 km E of Graham Rock turn-off on the Hyden–Newdegate road, M.H.Simmons 1327 (PERTH).

Notes

Similar to A. evenulosa which has minutely hairy branchlets, generally larger phyllodes with the gland 1–4 mm above the base; and A. saxatilis which has glabrous branchlets, generally larger phyllodes with the gland 1–2 mm above the base.

FOA Reference

Data derived from Flora of Australia Volumes 11A (2001), 11B (2001) and 12 (1998), products of ABRS, ©Commonwealth of Australia

Author

Minor edits by J.Rogers

B.R.Maslin